Make Room for More

Photo credit: Free-images.com

“Let every heart prepare Him room…”  We’ve all sung the joyful carol “O Come All Ye Faithful” countless times. In this last week before Christmas, let’s take a moment to examine how we might prepare our hearts for His coming.

We know that Christ’s love dwells in us and that it is meant to be shared. (Remember the saying, “Love isn’t love till you give it away”?) We prepare our hearts by spending time contemplating His immense love for us and then sharing that love with others in many different ways. So, the gifts we give at Christmas, whether they’re tangible items, our time, or our talents, are our response to God’s love for us. This response not only pours love onto the other person, it allows Christ’s love to grow in our hearts, too. Each time we give generously, Christ’s love expands in our hearts and creates a cycle that makes us more and more like Him:  When we give of ourselves, when we give away His love, we open our hearts to accept more of that love from Him. This love comes to us along with His gifts of peace and joy so that we’re inspired to share even more with others, which then opens our hearts for even more of His love. What does this look like in practice?

While you carefully consider what to give to someone special… while you’re making, baking, or buying a gift that will make them smile… while you’re anticipating with excitement the happiness your gift will bring... you’re preparing to share God’s Love and Joy and, in the process, you’re making room in your heart for more.

When you’re kind, patient, and cheerful with the harried cashier… when you over-tip the stressed-out wait staff…. when you let someone go ahead of you in line and then strike up a friendly conversation with them… you’re sharing God’s Love, Peace, and Joy, and making room in your heart for more.

When you put something in the red kettle… when you donate toward a community Giving Tree… when you give in any way to people in need… you’re offering God’s Love, Joy, and Hope, and making room in your heart for more.

When you bake Christmas cookies to share… when you participate in a gift exchange… when you decorate your workspace or home… you’re sharing God’s Love and Joy, and making room in your heart for more.

When we make room in our hearts for more of His love, peace, and joy, we find ourselves becoming more loving, patient, generous, and kind over time. We become more like Him.

Christ came to show us the way. Let’s take steps this week to prepare our hearts for His coming. Let’s give Him room to fill us with even more.

“Teach me Your ways, O Lord,” – Psalm 25:4

“Lord, help me prepare my heart for Your coming.”

Thank you for reading my reflection.  All thanks to God for giving me the ideas and guiding my words!    © 2024 Gina Bedell   

  

Through these reflections, I invite you, the reader, to reflect on a given topic and then seek deeper answers through prayer, additional spiritual reading, and/or consultation with clergy or other qualified persons in order to grow in your faith and understanding of God’s love and will for your life. 

Comments are always welcome! Please share this with your friends by clicking on one of the icons below. 

If you or someone you know would like to receive these writings directly, please email me at ginabedell1@gmail.com and I will add you to my ‘BCC’ email list.

You can also find my posts on Facebook!

P.S.

Pray for peace at home, in Ukraine, Russia, the Middle East, and around the world. Donate to a cause that tugs at your heart. Take care of those around you; take care of our planet. Pray for the families around the globe whose lives have been torn apart by war and natural disasters.

A Hiking Trail's Lessons

 

Wetmore Trail, CVNP

When Ted suggested we hike Wetmore Trail last weekend I immediately said, “Sure! Let’s try someplace new!” In the 35 years I’ve lived in this area, we had driven past signs for this trail countless times, but somehow we never hiked it. It turned out to be a beautiful trail for hikers and horseback riders in Cuyahoga Valley National Park. As we followed this winding four-mile path, I kept thinking, “How have we never hiked this before??” With so many other wonderful trails within a short drive from our home, we’d overlooked this one. I suppose that’s because, like a lot of other activities in life, we tended to go back to the ones that were familiar to us. Whatever the reason, I was delighted that we had stumbled upon something new, with our favorite features: expansive woods away from the sounds of traffic, streams to cross, and a few steep hills that kept it challenging, especially after last week’s snowfall.

Zoom in on the photo above: You can see the trail way up ahead as it winds through the woods. This would be hidden by foliage during every season except winter. I reminded myself that if we hiked only during the warmer months, when the weather’s nice and comfortable, we’d miss the unique kind of beauty that winter brings. 

As I marveled at the beauty and surprise of it all, I couldn’t help but compare this hike and this trail to our spiritual life: 

Advent is half over; Christmas is just two weeks away. It’s time to ask ourselves: Have I done anything different in my prayer life to strengthen my faith, my relationship with God, or my relationships with my loved ones? Have I done anything concrete for the people around me to prepare my heart for the coming of Christ? Or am I still doing what I’ve always done, sticking with what’s familiar, hoping my love for God and my neighbor will magically increase – or, worse yet, am I complacent with the status quo? 

In our spiritual life, if we always do the same things, if we do only what we’re comfortable with, we’ll miss opportunities for spiritual growth. We’ll miss experiencing God’s love for us in new and tremendous ways. Therefore, if we long to feel more fulfilled, if we want to experience a closer relationship with Christ and with the people around us, then we have to do something different. As I learned on the trail, we won’t experience anything new if we keep doing what we’ve always done. 

These last two weeks of Advent, resolve to do something concrete to strengthen your faith. Make time for prayer time. Serve your neighbor and loved ones with greater love. Contribute to a need in your community. Go out of your comfort zone, and watch God fill that empty space in your heart in surprising ways.

“Sing to the Lord a new song.” – Psalm 96:1

“Lord, I want You to renew my heart!”

Thank you for reading my reflection.  All thanks to God for giving me the ideas and guiding my words!    © 2024 Gina Bedell   

  

Through these reflections, I invite you, the reader, to reflect on a given topic and then seek deeper answers through prayer, additional spiritual reading, and/or consultation with clergy or other qualified persons in order to grow in your faith and understanding of God’s love and will for your life. 

Comments are always welcome! Please share this with your friends by clicking on one of the icons below. 

If you or someone you know would like to receive these writings directly, please email me at ginabedell1@gmail.com and I will add you to my ‘BCC’ email list.

You can also find my posts on Facebook!

P.S.

Pray for peace at home, in Ukraine, Russia, the Middle East, and around the world. Donate to a cause that tugs at your heart. Take care of those around you; take care of our planet. Pray for the families around the globe whose lives have been torn apart by war and natural disasters.

Advent: It's All About Love

If we were to explain to someone the purpose of Advent, I suppose most of us would answer something along the lines of, “Getting ready for Christmas.” While that is true, Christmas isn’t the only thing we’re preparing for. Also, Advent is about much more than decorating, shopping, and baking, though all of that is part of it, too.

The word ‘advent ‘comes from the Latin ‘adventus,’ which is translated ‘arrival’ or ‘coming.’ There are three components to Advent: 

The first component, of course, is our looking forward to Christmas Day, when we will celebrate the historical event of Jesus’ birth in Bethlehem. We’re looking ahead to celebrating a past event – the arrival of God on earth as a baby. Preparing for this is much like the plans we make to celebrate our own family’s birthdays and anniversaries. Christ was born to teach us to love purely and radically, so all of our decorating, shopping, and baking in preparation for Christmas are appropriate activities to prepare for this wondrous celebration and to show our love to others.  

The second component of Advent is looking ahead to the second coming of Christ.  This is understood to be at the final judgment, when each of us will have to answer for how well we loved our Lord through the people around us. John of the Cross (1542-1591) put it succinctly:  “At the end of your life, you will be judged by your love.” And so Advent is a time for us to prepare for the day when we will be judged: to reflect on our own lives, make changes where necessary, and trust His promise to welcome us into eternal life. 

The third component of Advent is acknowledging that Christ rose from the dead and is alive today. Our faith lets us believe that He has already arrived; He is here with us! When we pray The Lord’s Prayer (The Our Father) we ask, “Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.” We pray for heaven to come to earth – and recognize that, through our loving attitudes and actions, we can make that happen! In these weeks of Advent, we’re reminded to give more of ourselves, our time, and our talents to those around us in order to bring about the Kingdom of Heaven here and now. 

And so, as you decorate, shop, and bake, add pray. Thank Jesus for coming to earth to teach us how to love. Look ahead to your day of judgment and take steps to love more purely and radically. Seize each moment and ask our loving, living God to show you how you can bring the Kingdom of Heaven to the people and circumstances around you right now. Trust Him to lead you; watch for opportunities; and follow your gut.

May God strengthen our faith and make our hearts like His.

“Trust in the Lord forever!” – Isaiah 26:4

“Lord, prepare my heart this Advent season.”

Thank you for reading my reflection. © 2024 Gina Bedell     Comments are always welcome! 

Please share this with your friends by clicking on one of the icons below. Blogspot doesn’t have a ‘subscribe’ feature and so I appreciate your help in sharing my reflections. Thanks!

If you or someone you know would like to receive these writings directly, please email me at ginabedell1@gmail.com and I will add you to my ‘BCC’ email list.

You can also find my posts on Facebook!

P.S.

Pray for peace at home, in Ukraine, Russia, the Middle East, and around the world. Donate to a cause that tugs at your heart. Take care of those around you; take care of our planet. Pray for the families around the globe whose lives have been torn apart by war and natural disasters.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Photo credit: Free-images.com

Graced moments that put a smile in your heart: That’s my prayer for you this Thanksgiving. Whether you’re spending the holiday at home, traveling, or working, may you experience God’s love and peace in tangible ways. May joy fill your heart as you celebrate and give thanks for God’s abundant blessings. If you’re grieving or struggling, if celebrating is the last thing you feel like doing, may you sense our Lord speaking HIs love to irreplaceable you through people who wrap you in their love and appreciation.

This Thanksgiving, may you notice many things to be grateful for:

Thankful that you can stay in the comfort of your own home, or thankful for the time and means to travel.

Thankful for work to do, and thankful for the people who will benefit from your work.

Thankful for good health, or thankful for those who care for you.

Thankful for struggles that have brought out an inner strength you didn’t know you had, and thankful for the individuals who helped you get through those challenges.

Thankful for all the people our Lord has blessed you with.

Above all, thankful for God’s unconditional and ever-present love. 

May you have a spirit of gratitude that is deeper and richer than a mental ‘attitude of gratitude.’

With a spirit of gratitude, we open our hearts to the kind of contentment, peace, and joy that only God can give us. We invite contentment when we realize that everything we have is gifted to us from God. We invite joy when we thank God for the people we love, and let them know we love them. We invite peace when we thank God even for those people we find difficult. Guess what? They probably find us difficult, too. We invite joy when we make an extra effort to be kind to them. And, our spirit of gratitude leads us to experience both peace and joy when we recognize God’s loving hand guiding us and holding us close to Him in every circumstance we find ourselves in.

I’m thankful for all of you who read my reflections, pass them on to others, or give me feedback on what I’ve written. God gets all the credit: I thank Him for giving me the ideas and guiding the words I write. If something I’ve written touches your heart, it makes me happy to know that I’ve conveyed the message clearly.

Happy Thanksgiving!

“May He grant you joy of heart, and may peace abide among you.”  –Sirach 50:23

“Thank You, Lord, for the countless blessings You have given me.”

Thank you for reading my reflection. © 2024 Gina Bedell     Comments are always welcome! 

Please share this with your friends by clicking on one of the icons below. Blogspot doesn’t have a ‘subscribe’ feature and so I appreciate your help in sharing my reflections. Thanks!

If you or someone you know would like to receive these writings directly, please email me at ginabedell1@gmail.com and I will add you to my ‘BCC’ email list.

You can also find my posts on Facebook!

P.S.

Pray for peace at home, in Ukraine, Russia, the Middle East, and around the world. Donate to a cause that tugs at your heart. Take care of those around you; take care of our planet. Pray for the families around the globe whose lives have been torn apart by war and natural disasters.

Praise Him With Music

Photo credit:  Free-images.com

Music is a universal language. It brings people together; it can connect people of different countries, cultures, and languages where spoken words cannot. It’s like another love language! All throughout our lives, from birthdays to funerals and everything in between, music adds beauty and power to the words we speak. 

What does music have to do with God? In the Bible, music is referenced more than 1,000 times. Singing, specifically, is mentioned more than 400 times. Many of the psalms speak of playing music and singing. Music plays an important role in our liturgies, too. It adds beauty to the celebration, and the songs’ lyrics often strike at the heart when spoken words do not. Praying in song may help us feel more connected to God. Also, when the congregation is inspired to sing along, their fuller participation strengthens the sense of community between its members. And to those who claim they don’t sing because they sing badly I say, “God gave you that voice. Give it back to Him!” 

The last three verses of Psalm 150 are full of music. I was happy to see that the Scriptures for one of this week’s weekday Masses included Psalm 150. I use the weekday Scriptures in these blog reflections. In Psalm 150, you can hear the excitement in the psalmist’s voice as he tells us to use music to praise the Lord. The psalmist seems to be crying out, “Just look at how magnificent the Lord is! Praise Him with your whole being! Blast the trumpet! Clash the cymbals! Praise Him with any and every instrument you have! Sing out!” Listen to the power in the final words: “Let everything that has breath praise the Lord!” As long as we’re breathing, let us praise the Lord!

Side note: It took me a while to understand the difference between praising God and thanking Him. When we praise God, we focus on His nature: “I praise you, Lord, for You are loving and merciful.” When we thank God, we thank Him for something specific: “Thank You, Lord, for my family.” Why does this difference matter? When life is difficult, it’s sometimes a challenge to find things to be thankful for. However, even though our circumstances change, God never changes. So we can praise Him for being loving, kind, merciful, and powerful, even in the midst of our difficulties.

Read Psalm 150 a few times and hear the excitement and urgency in the psalmist’s words. Hear the psalmist encourage you to praise the Lord. Praise Him with your voice! Praise Him with an instrument! Everyone, praise our loving God!

“Praise him with the blast of the trumpet, praise him with lyre and harp. Praise him with timbrel and dance, praise him with strings and pipe. Praise him with sounding cymbals, praise him with clanging cymbals. Let everything that has breath praise the Lord!” 

– Psalm 150:3-6

“Lord, I praise You with all my heart and soul and voice!”

p.s. The women’s a cappella quintet I sing with, Grace Notes, has two performances this week! See the flier below for more info. Hope to see you there!

Thank you for reading my reflection. © 2024 Gina Bedell     Comments are always welcome! 

Please share this with your friends by clicking on one of the icons below. Blogspot doesn’t have a ‘subscribe’ feature and so I appreciate your help in sharing my reflections. Thanks!

If you or someone you know would like to receive these writings directly, please email me at ginabedell1@gmail.com and I will add you to my ‘BCC’ email list.

You can also find my posts on Facebook!

P.S.

Pray for peace at home, in Ukraine, Russia, the Middle East, and around the world. Donate to a cause that tugs at your heart. Take care of those around you; take care of our planet. Pray for the families around the globe whose lives have been torn apart by war and natural disasters.

You Might Be an Answer to Prayer

Photo credit:  Free-images.com

My husband and I were browsing the gift shop in the beautiful Hocking Hills State Park Lodge that sunny afternoon when a young man approached Ted and said, “Excuse me, sir. Do you know how to tie a tie?” He looked to be in his early 20s, wearing a dark suit and crisp white shirt. Ted said, “Sure, let me have it.” He put it around his own neck and tied it while the young man watched intently. As Ted pulled the tie up over his head and handed it back he asked, “Are you going for a job interview?” The guy answered, “No, I’m getting married downstairs!” With a quick “Thank you!” he turned and hurried toward the staircase.

I can’t imagine being so laid-back that you don’t worry about a detail like knowing how to tie a tie for your own wedding. Maybe this young man had prayed with confidence that he would run into someone who could tie it for him. Maybe he was so trusting of God and his fellow man that he knew he’d find someone who would help him out when the time came. If that’s the case, then Ted was the answer to his prayers. 

Another time, I was driving home at night and there was a detour because of construction. GPS technology was new and still not very reliable. Praying I wouldn’t get lost, I stopped at a gas station to confirm what the GPS was telling me. The woman working behind the counter reassured me I was on the right route, saying, “I lived in Akron. I go that way all the time.” When I thanked her she added, “I wasn’t supposed to work tonight but I filled in for someone else.” She was in the right place at the right time to help me.

Think back to a time when you found yourself in a situation to help a stranger, even in a small way. Maybe you held the door open for a mom pushing a stroller. Maybe you invited the new coworker to join you for lunch. No matter what the circumstances, when you helped a stranger you were doing the work of our Lord. Maybe the mom had left the house knowing that getting the stroller through the doorway would be difficult, and prayed that someone would hold the door for her. Maybe the new employee decided not to worry about being alone at lunchtime and trusted that he’d know what to do when the time came. Maybe people every day wonder how they’ll handle a particular challenge, and pray that God will help them find a way.

When you’re in the right place at the right time to help a stranger, you could be the answer to their prayers.

“Beloved, you are faithful in all you do for the brothers and sisters, especially for strangers.” – 3 John 5

“Lord, guide me to serve You in the strangers I meet.”

Thank you for reading my reflection. © 2024 Gina Bedell     Comments are always welcome! 

Please share this with your friends by clicking on one of the icons below. Blogspot doesn’t have a ‘subscribe’ feature and so I appreciate your help in sharing my reflections. Thanks!

If you or someone you know would like to receive these writings directly, please email me at ginabedell1@gmail.com and I will add you to my ‘BCC’ email list.

You can also find my posts on Facebook!

P.S.

Pray for peace at home, in Ukraine, Russia, the Middle East, and around the world. Donate to a cause that tugs at your heart. Take care of those around you; take care of our planet. Pray for the families around the globe whose lives have been torn apart by war and natural disasters.

Thank God for Fall

“Where should we go this time?” My husband and I are incredibly grateful for the many, many wonderful hiking trails within a few miles of where we live. Hiking is a great mental and emotional getaway for me. It’s even more comforting than a walk around the neighborhood, which is saying a lot because we also enjoy doing that. 

I find God’s peace on these trails, flooded with the miracles of God’s creation. There’s something magically distracting about following an unpaved path, crossing over streams, using roots and rocks for steps, marveling at the rock formations, and admiring the wide variety of trees, flowers, and other plants we encounter. 

The photo above is one I took at Punderson State Park a couple weeks ago. The leaves had just started turning. The water reflecting the gorgeous blue sky and the leaves displaying their previously hidden oranges and yellows made it easy for me to see God’s love expressed to us through His magnificent creation. 

There are countless other ways besides hiking to let nature remind us of God’s goodness. I encourage you to get out and savor the beauty of His creation! 

Remember being a kid and the happy swooshing sound you made as you pushed your feet through the leaves on the sidewalk? Walk around your yard or down the street and experience that again. Let your heart lighten up as you look for a treasured red heart-shaped leaf. Fill a vase or glass bowl with colorful foliage for a pretty countertop decoration. Frantically throw leaves at each other until you giggle yourselves silly, as one of my daughters and I did. (The expression of wonder on my little granddaughter’s face was priceless.)  

Let the inner beauty of the love in your heart shine through its hardened outer shell, like the reds and yellows of the leaves that emerge triumphant in autumn over the greens. If you don’t have access to a trail, take a walk around your neighborhood or a park. If you can’t walk, take a drive. Or sit outside. And if you can’t do that, then sit by a window and gaze at all the gorgeous colors the Lord has on display for us this fall.

Let the beauty of creation shout to you and reassure you that life is good, because God is good – all the time.

“I believe that I shall see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living.” 

– Psalm 27:13

“Lord, let us see and appreciate with fresh eyes Your love expressed to us through the universe You’ve created for us to enjoy.”

Thank you for reading my reflection. © 2024 Gina Bedell     Comments are always welcome! 

Please share this with your friends by clicking on one of the icons below. Blogspot doesn’t have a ‘subscribe’ feature and so I appreciate your help in sharing my reflections. Thanks!

If you or someone you know would like to receive these writings directly, please email me at ginabedell1@gmail.com and I will add you to my ‘BCC’ email list.

You can also find my posts on Facebook!

P.S.

Pray for peace at home, in Ukraine, Russia, the Middle East, and around the world. Donate to a cause that tugs at your heart. Take care of those around you; take care of our planet. Pray for the families around the globe whose lives have been torn apart by war and natural disasters.